Prices for used vehicles fell slightly in April

Observation:  Whether it was caused by a tectonic shift in pre-owned inventory after the 2010 Cash for Clunkers stimulus—or because people were holding on to their old vehicles during and after the recession—supply-and-demand has kept used car prices high for quite some time.  But this week, Automotive News reports that prices finally fell for the month of April.  Click here to see the story.

Implications:   Pent-up demand brought buyers back to the showroom last year, and year-over-year sales for new vehicles has been strong.  That helps alleviate a shortage of pre-owned vehicles (buyers brought older cars and trucks to trade in). 

Mike Anderson, for the Elm Street Economics consumer trends blog. A service of The Center for Sales Strategy, Inc.